Author's Note

This chapter is written in a third person perspective, just so you know.
Second Title for these two chapters: The Ganger Opp Part. (Norwegian)

The Griffons Perspective Part One Part

Special thanks to The Cake Devil for editing this chapter.

Gilda grunted as she stumbled on an uprooted piece of the cobblestone bridge atop the peaceful, lazy brook. She caught herself before she could fall, but her stubbed paw showed that she didn’t get off altogether. It didn’t so much irk her that she had stumbled. But that it had been the seventh time since she made the short trip towards the cottage, along the outskirts of the peaceful town of Ponyville. After leaving her now almost three year long mate, who had to attend a meeting with the princess of Ponyville.

It wasn’t her fault, the weight under her swung like a newton's cradle. Every time she tried to pick up momentum it threw her off balance. Perhaps she should have been more careful, but to keep herself from stumbling every few minutes she would have had to go at a pace that even a tortoise would have scoffed at.

And Gilda didn’t do slow.

She grunted again, this time at the cramp at her side, which caused her to stop outright. Clutching her stomach she waited for the uncomfortable pains to subside. Another thing that acted up every few minutes, more so today than any other time this month.

“Listen kid, let's make a deal, let me get inside and sit down and you can punch and kick for as long as you want, got it?” Gilda sullenly grunted to her stomach. Ironically, the pain began to subside the moment she uttered the deal and Gilda found herself chuckling at that.

Finally having crossed the perennial stream, she waddled up the small earthen rampart to the cottage, which felt more arduous because of her added weight, Gilda sat down on her withers and knocked loudly on the wooden door three times.

“J-Just a moment please.” A frazzled and as expected demure voice called out, as the sounds of hissing, squeaks, chirps, hoots, bleats, croaks, warbles and clicks (among other things) bellowed out from the open windows of the cottage, in a parade of near deafening noise.

Gilda raised her brow at the sounds, before shrugging. She guessed that Fluttershy was having a bad day with the animals, it was a rare occurrence but in the past few months that Gilda had gotten to truly know her, she had seen a few of them. And they weren't pretty.

Gilda surmised Fluttershy could do her job more easily if she would just tell them to shut it more often. That would work for her. Then again, animals never seemed to care much for Gilda, or to like the scent of a griffon at all, especially cats. Perhaps it was the scent of an apex predator. Or simply just her demeanor. Her human said that animals, like dogs, could sense those things. Now that she thought about it, perhaps it was more her fault that Fluttershy animals were acting up. The wind was blowing behind her, perhaps it was quite possible they could have picked up her scent from a few yards away.

Again Gilda shrugged, Fluttershy could handle it just fine.

Gilda gazed around the horizon with disinterested, nothing seemed to catch her eye, not the dancing of trees, as the wind swept and caught there leaves, nor the occasional rustling from a pair of squirrels foraging, nor that white rabbit with an angry pout that Fluttershy liked so much hopping out of the bushes, twitching its nose patiently before diving back into the undergrowth. Nor even the family of otters flapping their tails in unison as they swam lazily around a pocket of water, encircled by long green reeds, that split off from the main body of the stream. She saw it all, but she registered none of it for more than a moment.

It was when she looked up forlornly at the sky, that she allowed herself to sigh and take in what the infinite blue had to offer her.

Soon.

That was all she could think, as she looked at a near perfect set of clouds, almost ring shaped, each one of them. How she would trade every coin she had, just to race up there now, wings extended, she would hit each side of the ring with her wings as she spun around, just to prove she had meet all of them, even if none were around to witness it. True, she wasn't the fastest, but griffons were nimble, she could turn on a dime, hit all three disjointed circular clouds in seconds and be down before anyone would know.

But then of course someone would know. She looked down at her stomach again and pouted. Even if, for some reason, she pretended she didn’t, she already loved her baby, the instinctual maternal care for her chick was impossible to ignore, her child was a part of her in both the literal and metaphorical senses of the word. But that didn't mean she didn’t find her frustrating. Even if it was hardly the chicks fault for her temporary prohibition on flight.

And just then the kicking began again, almost doubling the levels of discomfort from before. As if the chick had caught onto her fantasy, somehow scolding her mother for trying to cheat her way into some air time.

Gilda's eye twitched. “Will you just come out already!” She bellowed at her unborn charge.

A myriad of animal noises once again erupted from the house, that had been quite for more than a few moments, and immediately the door flung open, as the small creamy yellow and bubblegum pink veterinarian landed face first on the welcome mat by the door. Her face and parts of her body was covered in short, tattered greyish blue bird feathers.

Gilda looked down at the mare and then tilted her head to the side, confused by her, (still relatively new) friend's entrance.

Fluttershy looked up at her with tired, bloodshot eyes. “Sorry Gilda, I tried to get Filla back in the cage as quickly as I could, but he's started fledging and he gets really restless, I didn’t mean to keep you waiting.” Fluttershy explained, as she coughed out one of the greyish blue feathers that had somehow gotten into her mouth.

“What? Oh thats cool I wasn’t yellin’ at you, I was-” She stopped for a moment, wondering how she would sound if she said she was just actually yelling at her stomach, or even her unborn daughter, that didn't seem like a very awesome thing to be caught doing. “-so, yeah uh, you free now?” She said instead as she sheepishly scratched the back of her neck.

Fluttershy shook the feathers away from her face, blushing as she got back up on her hooves. She nodded, holding the door for Gilda, who casually walked inside, gazing around the room.

She’d seen all there was to offer from the cosy, old, rustic cottage. But unlike every other house, (her own excluded to a large room that her stallion used to ply his trade.) Fluttershy’s house was alive and animated in a sea of animals that dwelled in it. It was like looking at a petting zoo that changed critters every week.

The musky scent of animal fur and food was strong in the house. But thanks to the plants and herbs that hung among the rafters and on the corners of the room, it was mostly masked. Again, Gilda didn’t care much in the way of animals, sure, some of them were cool to look at. And she always sort of wanted an Orthrus, or maybe a Falcon, heck she's even take a Hummingbird, just so they could fly together and she knew the bird would keep up with her turns. That would be awesome. But she wasn’t all that good at looking after things, the only thing she ever really had in the way of taking care of stuff was a cactus. One that that blue pegasus had given her, back in flight school, as a joke gift. And even that had died after the first few months.

Apparently cactus’s, despite being in a dessert need more water than she thought they did.

The thought made her frown, as her mind's eye wandered to the cargo she was carrying inside her. But she dismissed the thought, though it didn’t stop her from frowning, nor from her troubled prognostication as to the hardships that was to come. Or how it would affect her usual easygoing, laissez-faire approach to life.

“W-Would you like something to drink, maybe?” Fluttershy voice rang out, shaking the griffon from her troubled thoughts. Gilda turned from the entrance of the room towards the kitchen, where her little friend was standing patiently inside. A small welcoming smile on her face. Oblivious to her new friends parental conundrums.

Gilda shrugged. “Eh, sure what you got?”

Fluttershy taps her chin in thought, her tail wagged happily as she pondered the contents of her cabinets, before responding with another friendly smile. “Well, as it happens, Twilight just gave me a whole pot of special tea--”

Gilda held up a talon. “That ain’t tea this time, I mean.” She quickly added, she was sick of tea.

Fluttershy warm smile quickly descends into a small, slightly panicked frown. “Oh, um, well, I have some juice, I think, but probably only apple or orange, sorry, unless you just want some water?”

Gilda thought for a moment, as she slowly made her way over to the kitchen, picking the left wooden seat closest to the back wall, so that she could have a view of everything that went on in the kitchen. Not that she would need to really, It was just her and Fluttershy. However it was more of an inveterate need nowadays ; A habit she picked up in some of her more temerarious days. Days where perhaps it was better that she had her back to no one and her eyes on everyone.

“Apple sounds pretty good, thanks.” She decided, letting out a long, throaty, content sigh as her swollen paws and claws were given some rest from the weight of her own body.

Fluttershy nodded, whizzing around the room on her small, petite wings. Collecting the cups and containers she lightheartedly hummed a happy upbeat tune. Before flying back over towards a steel kettle, sat atop an open flame, as it began to whistle. Gilda tried not to look at the flying mare, instead focusing on rubbing her aching wrists, but she couldn’t help it. A touch of jealousy grew somewhere deep inside of her as she watched the mare buzz and dance around the kitchen, majestically and without a care in the world.

She tried to take her mind off the matter by gazing around the place, she’d been here more than a few times now, but she still couldn’t help but notice the similarities between her home and this one.

The furniture for a start, the tasteful rugs dotted around the floor, and the soft light green couches (though different in colour) where near identical to hers at home. Even the drapes were the same, including the wooden honeytone coloured window shutters, with the same cared engravings of leaves on either side of them. It was almost to a “T” the same as Fluttershy house.

Besides the comfortably big kitchen that was.

She wondered if the big guy had done this by pure coincidence, knowing that he had spent his first few months in the mares home as a roommate, having his own home to decorate, a familiar setting to assimilate to might have simply sprung to mind subconsciously, or perhaps he had modeled it after her home by conscious choice. Perhaps all homes in Ponyville had similar interior to this, Gilda had only been in two houses in her time here, excluding her own house, and the castle, which she thought didn’t really count. Ultimately Gilda concluded it had no real meaning, it was a nice home, nothing like a cloud house, but contemplating it at least took Gildas mind off of things.

But unfortunately, though she tried to distract herself from her shameful jealousy, she had inescapably triggered another even worse form of it, one that encompassed her stallion as well as the pegasus mare, thoughts of the similarities of the houses brought similar connotations to the time they shared together and just how much they had in common. Again now that she had been around the mares for this amount of time, she couldn’t help but notice the same traits and correlations they had together.

Gilda sighed again.

She didn’t know why she was thinking about these things in recent months, it was stupid, she would be the first to say it. There was nothing that even remotely showed that he wasn’t hers, whole heartedly, and vice versa. However, even though she pondered it briefly, it did hurt to a degree that he hadn’t brought up anything about perhaps reciprocating her feather, or even talked about it at all.

And also that it would also have been remiss of her to neglect the idea that Fluttershy wasn't worth it either, should it ever be brought up. All with eyes could see that the mare was drop dead stunning, Gilda wasn't vain enough to state that she was anywhere near the level Fluttershy was on, in fact if she was still a single Griffoness or one who knew her mate herded, she would have at least tried something on the mare by now. It would be a crime not to, in all fairness.

Fluttershy was nice, stunning, had a slim figure, a small well rounded muzzle, pony wings to kill for, she was patient, she never swore, she didn't threaten to punch anypony for looking at her funny, she was a wicked cook and she was a national hero. As much as she liked that about her friend she hated it just as much if she was allowing herself to be brutally honest. She just couldn't help but notice that if that happened, perhaps if she was with anypony else, she would not have been up to the challenge of being the alpha mare in a relationship. In a typical pony herd somepony like Fluttershy would have that down in spades. She could only tell herself, compared to that... What candle did she have?

No!She almost yelled the thought out loud.

Even with the mares personality and beauty, Gilda still knew her feather mate wore her primary proudly and at all times purely out of love for her, (except for the shower,) and though she would admit she never made it easy for him (or to a degree, him for her) there relationship was still, somehow, going strong. It was that thought, coupled with the feather he wore, that still made her cheeks warm and sent embarrassing and intoxicating little butterfly's flapping in her stomach.

In times like these she had somepony to tell her she was special.

Gilda groaned. She blamed the conspiratorial thoughts of humans and mares, on hormones and unbalanced chemicals that flew around her system these past few months, they were simply out to get her, she didn't need this closure shit when she wasn't pregnant...

Again she groaned, yes she did, she was just better at hiding it back then.

She slumped further down on the chair, frowning deeply. She needed her stallion, she needed him right now, she wanted him to tell her she was special. Tell her she was more than just a bloated hormonal tomboyish Griffoness with an accidental baby on the way. She needed him to tell her he loved her. She wanted to lay her down next to him, like that night they took their friendship to the next level, she wanted him to pull her down, dig his strong fingers into her flank and rut her bucking sill--

“Gilda, is, is something the matter?” The tender voice of Fluttershy broke Gildas train of thought. Gilda looked up from her claws, which were dug deep into her seat, to notice the mare was now sitting on the other side of the small table, the hot mist of her tea cup rising up past her muzzle, which was scrunched in unease.

Eyeing the glass next to her, Gilda noticed the icey cold droplets of the glass of juice that created a small puddle from the condensation, indicating that the glass and by extension the mare, had been there for some time now.

Wow, how long was I daydreaming?

She pondered as she mentally commanded her tail to stop swaying happily from side to side. And for her wings to stop twitching.

Gilda noticed a worried frown on Fluttershy's lips, as she leaned forward resting her hooves onto the table. “Sorry Gilda, it’s just, you seemed... sad? D-do you wanna talk about it? I’ll listen to anything you have to say.” She asked earnestly.

Anything? Well funny story, did you know hospital beds are actually really good for foreplay, you know that extending thing they do, where the top part goes up? Best thing ever! Gilda almost tore herself up, wanting that to be her rebuttal. But she knew the mare she was dealing with. If it was clinical, she had no problem, but straight up girl girl sex talk, well... In what little moments of rest Gilda had, it would suck if she would have to spend them coaxing the bashful mare out of a closet she would (inevitability) lock herself into.

“Nah, it’s nothing Shy, just some stuff, you know how it goes.” Gilda stated, banishing the conversation away as she waved her claw. Brandishing the cup, she took long gulps of the juice.

“Umm, okay then, if that's what you want, well, before we begin, are you feeling better since last week? You seem less um, uncomfortable? Since the last time we talked?” Fluttershy was not too happy about changing the subject, but she deemed it to push on better than to force the topic further.

Gilda shrugged “Yeah I’m good actually, I don’t feel so bloated, even though I’m looking like a balloon now, and the mood swings have gone down this week. I think? Well, I mean dummy doesn’t help sometimes, with all his fussing, but he means well, so I let him live.” Gilda chuckled at her own joke. Remembering some of the downright silly fights she had had with him, over things like 'where the can opener was, staying up late, not staying up late enough, not spending enough time together, where her scarf was, saying he stole her scarf, (realising she didn't have a scarf,) spending way too much time together, what colour the baby's room should be, not wanting to go to that stupid mayor pony watch meeting and where the can opener was.'

Funnily enough, some of those might have been before she got knocked up and the hormones drove her temporarily nutty, now that she thought about it. But who was keeping tabs on that really?

Fluttershy grinned at Gilda's response, but it had too much teeth to it, she was still, after this much time, not perfectly sure when Gilda was joking or not. Then again, she would consider their friendship still in the infant steps, perhaps more than that, but she didn't quite know, that was more of Twilight's thing.

“H-hows your day been so far?” She asked a bit too quickly, wanting to avoid the awkwardness of the encroaching silence that seems omnipresent in the room, threatening to take over in a moments notice. She was sure whatever Gilda was brooding over would return eventually and she hoped she could keep her griffon friends mind off it before it returned with avengence, it was the best she could do if the griffon didn't want to talk about it.

Then again she was not what most would call a "talkative" mare.

Gilda gave Fluttershy one of her trademark cocksure grins. “Shy, it’s like nine in the morning, It’s not even been, like, one eighth of a day for me yet.”

Fluttershy blushed lightly, gazing at the clock in the kitchen quickly. “Oh, um, I guess you’re right… how’s that been then?”

"What been?"

"The, eh, the one eighth of your day?"

Gilda chuckled, but no happiness was behind it. “Fine, I guess.”

“That’s, good."

Gilda shrugged. "Yeah, guess it is."

Another moment of silence passed between them.

“Um do you, want some more juice?” Fluttershy asked politely, tapping her hooves together as she fought with the uncomfortable silence between them.

“Nah, I’m good.” Gilda stated, looking back down at her claws once more.

“Oh, okay.”

“Maybe later?”

“Um, okay that’s fine.”

The oppressive kitchen clock ticked on.

"Do you have any, um plans for today?"

"Got that meeting thing the big guys forcing me to go to, at the bakery with that pink mare." Gilda's jaw set hard as she uttered the last part of the sentence.

"Oh? Oh yes, the Pinkie Pie party. Are you looking forward to it?"

"Bucks no."

"Oh, okay then..."

The oppressive kitchen clock uncomfortably ticked on.

Fluttershy abstained from further questioning of her day, tapping her hooves together, meticulously looking around for anything to comment on. As the ticking of the clock on the wall somehow became louder and more oppressive with each passing second.

It was not that they didn't have anything to talk about, Fluttershy was actually quite fascinated with listening to Gilda retrace one of her old stories of her teenage years and her early twenty's, and the amount she had, it seemed, was almost infinite. She often liked the notion of seeing the world vicariously through the griffons perspective, places she would probably not like to go to very much, and experiences she thought she could not quite handle on her own, because of the danger or seedy undertones of the towns and establishments. But still, she was undeniably fascinated by them. Plus Gilda was quite fond of telling them to any pony who would listen.

And Gilda had to admit she liked the subtle humour Fluttershy added to her life, unknowingly to the pegasus or not, it made Gilda smile seeing the mare get flustered or let slip something her mind had failed to edit. Mostly when it came to sex, but other forms of social taboo as well. It was like the real 'not sheltered' Fluttershy had slipped out against her own will when that happened.

Plus having someone feminine around was a decent enough change of pace, Gilda would admit she wasn’t very girly herself and she never really sought the platonic company of mares or sows or any others of the female persuasion. It was hard for her to rationalise it. But ultimately, she liked Fluttershy's company.

But for as much as they mutually liked one another, the silence wasn't going away and the oppressive kitchen clock awkwardly ticked on.

Fluttershy eyes feel once more on the slouching griffon, she couldn't help but notice a difference in Gilda.

Something was truly bothering the griffon and Fluttershy seemed to think she had a pretty good notion of what that was. After all, her mother had given her so much useful advice on being a midwife these last couple of months. Being a professional pediatrician, she didn’t exactly help with deliveries, but she knew a lot about the process. She was practically born for these types of things, as she would like to joke. Her mother had graced her daughter with a lot of information, a frankly enormous amount of information, some might say she gave her young daughter too much information.

Evidently Fluttershy had found out that she had been a cesarean, something she had realised when she had awoke from passing out on the floor having been shown the correct procedure for that, using an crystal mirror spell recording of her very own birth. Something no mare should have to see.

Though meaning well, her mother was a tad aloof at times.

But she had told her daughter that, couples, especially young ones, had troubles with coming to terms with being parents. The lack of life experiences, lack of confidences or even the notion that if they could handle those things, the ever present fear of doubt that one another would be there for each other on such a demanding level.

It either happened at the very beginning or manifested itself later in the pregnancy, but it always showed. And Fluttershy had a funny feeling that the usual ‘tell it like it is’ Griffon, was dealing with something like that.

A stronger mare would have broached the topic by now. But, regrettably, Fluttershy, as was her nature, was not quite sure how to address the elephant in the room, the metaphorical one, not Henry, who would be coming on Tuesday, she spoke to him just fine.

Try as she might, playing with all the scenarios and hypothetical situations floating in her head she just couldn't think of a way to bridge the conversations. Sure, she had learned a lot about talking with her friends, her short, but lucrative modeling career with Photo Finish had taught her to speak up for herself and the motivational assistance from Iron Will (Who she was still taking secret lessons from every two weeks,) had greatly bolstering her confidence and assertiveness. However, it was a little different with Gilda, because Gildas pregnancy was ultimately different.

Ultimately she would have to wait for the griffon to make the first move.

Fluttershy fought back a sigh.

The oppressive clock selfishly ticked on.

Left to their own brooding thoughts, the room continued in palpably heavy silence. Gilda looking down at her throbbing claws, Fluttershy tucked inside her own safe room, I.e. her long thick bubblegum pink mane. Occasionally muttered some inaudible words of inspiration to help her muster the impetus to speak.

It was after an unknown time had passed that the silence was boorishly disrupted. A loud thumping noise startled both of them. Both of their eyes were drawn down to a white rabbit, that was waving its forelegs rapidly in the air, like tree branches in a hurricane, thumping its foot on the wooden floor for attention.

Fluttershy took it as a chance to escape from the oppressive silence and regroup, as she lept onto the fuzzy, white opportunity. "Oh hello Angel sweetie, what's the matter?"

Angel pointed to the griffon, then pointed to the back door his eyes wide with a frantic panic as he jumped up and down sporadically, not taking his gaze off of Fluttershy.

"What's wrong sweetie, it’s just Gilda?" Fluttershy asked quizzically, leaning down to his level.

Angel waved his paws at the Griffon, pointing to her and then to the door making a shooing notion, as if commanding her to leave immediately. The action of the rabbit made Gilda's skin crawl.

"Hey, tell that little, soon-to-be pelt to scram, if he's got a problem!" Gilda growled turning to the rabbit and throwing it a deathly glare.

Angel took no notice of this however as his panicked, almost dance like need for attention doubled. Again and again he pointed to the griffoness then at a window in the kitchen then to the back door.

Fluttershy,a little worried by his actions picked Angel up and began stroking the top of his head. "Aww, is my sweet little Angel cranky about his food, I'm sorry I haven't had a chance to make it on time today, mommy's been busy."

The bunny rolled its eyes at its master. He was cranky about that, but that was besides the point. Struggling to get get free, he popped out of his mistress arms running up to Gilda he pushed his whole body against her trying, in complete vain, to get her to move from the kitchen and by extension the house.

Gilda's eye twitched as she mentally visualised tying it up on a spit roast by an open flame. She picked up Angel by his ears and threw him into Fluttershy's awaiting hooves. "You do that to me again you little fluff ball, I'll have you turned into a coat so fast you won't know what hit you!" She bellowed pointing at the fluffy beast threateningly

"Gilda please, he’s just a sweet little bunny, he’s only playing." As if adding insult to injury Fluttershy stroked the bunny who was wearing a still panicked but now also fuming look on his face, as he was squished into his mistresses chest.

Fluttershy seemed oblivious as she flapped her way towards the exit of the kitchen. "He's only a bunny rabbit, he doesn't know any better."

Despite all his squeaks of protest, Angels protests were not heard. No matter how much he tried.

Gilda scoffed at that as the pegasus began to fly into the next room. "Shy, one of these day we got to sit you down and discuss the unhealthy relationship you have with that stupid rabbit. and then we can discuss tying it to a firework and sending it to the moon.”

“What did you say Gilda?”

“Nothin’, nothin’, just do it quick okay, I can’t stay here forever.” Though she wished she could, that bunny was almost like hanging out with the Canterlot Raiders hoofball team, compared to who she had to meet later on today.

Why did it have to be the Pink mare?

Sulking she turned her head over to the window, only to catch a lingering shadow behind the glass quickly zipped away, at a frightening speed, as Gilda locked eyes with it. Spooked, Gilda shoot back in her seat, almost falling out of her chair.

"What the buck was that!" She whispered to herself. Jumping off the chair, she raced over to the window as fast as her legs could carry her. She pressed her beak to the glass keeping an eye out for anything that moved.

Nothing.

The outside of the house was just as it always was.

"Haha just one the animals I guess, haha... ha...Shy, you don't happen to have that bear around again do you!?"

"Just a moment Gilda." Fluttershy answered, too distracted to focus on Gilda's question.

"Y-yeah no worries, I'll just, I'm going to go to the living room, maybe check the back doors are locked."

"What was that Gilda?"

"I'll be in the living room, just, chilling you know."

"Okay I'll be one min-- Angel, sweetie just a moment, I need to get the medical bag out the closet. No honey, you can't play outside right now so stop pointing to the door."

Gilda slapped herself a few time trying to control the momentary shock of the aberration she had thought she had seen, as she stared through the window. "Bucking snap out of it dweeb, it was just a stupid animal..."

Somehow the thought didn't help her.